I preached this message last Sunday night and give it here in a condensed form with some editing.

I want to point out that memories hold a very important place in our lives, now and in the future. God was constantly telling the Hebrews to remember, and often would remind them of their experiences of the past. In Luke 16:25 Father Abraham reminded the lost, rich man in Hell of his past. In Luke 17:32 Jesus said, “Remember Lot’s wife?” In Phil. 1:1-7 spoke some tender words to the Saints at Philipi and mentioned his memory of them in days gone by. For those of us who are Christians, most of our good memories will center around Christ, the Church and Christian friends. Here in our Church, many not only got saved here, but were born here, raised here, met here, and married here. In Phil. 1:3 their fellowship was unbroken. On several occasions, the Apostle Paul mentions his memory of others who had either been with him, or had worked with him or had been won by him. Those were lifetime memories.

I want to give you several reasons we should be faithful to the Lord and make good Spiritual memories.

Sometimes, good memories help us through bad times. Sometime in life, we may be faced with some difficulty and may tend to think we may not survive. However, a good memory of the past may lift us up and encourage us to wait on deliverance as we had experienced in years gone by.

Sometimes, good memories remind us of the goodness of God in the past. This helps us believe that God is still the same God and He can do the same thing now that He did in years gone by. He is the same God of all comfort, God of all mercy. Matthew 16:1-10

Sometimes, good memories become our last link with heaven. By that I mean, you could get out of God’s will; you could get out of Church and leave your friends, your faith, and find yourself in a far country, however, you will never get away from the sweet memories of days gone by when you were in the Father’s house enjoying the blessings of God. In Luke 15:12-24 the prodigal son left the Father’s house, went away into a far country, yet the thing that broke his heart was when “he came to himself” and remembered the blessings of the Father’s house. His memories brought him back and the Father rejoiced and received him with open arms.

Now, I must ask. Are you out of Church? Away from the Lord? Roaming around in the far country? Do you remember the great blessings of the past when you lived for the Lord and felt His power and touch on you life? Do you remember singing the songs, shaking hands with friends, seeing people come to receive Christ, maybe even your own children? There is a way back and the Father waits with open arms. Why not return to the Father and enjoy again your memories of the past?